Sissinghurst VA Church of England Primary School maintains an inclusive approach to education and we aim to provide equality of opportunity for all children. All children are valued, respected and welcomed to the school whatever their additional educational need such as  a specific learning, physical, behavioural and emotional, communication and language or health need. More able children, children who have English as an additional language and those on our pupil premium register are also recognised as having additional needs.  There may also be stressful times such illness, bereavement and family breakdowns when families and children require support. We will support their learning and ensure they are fully included in all school activities.

We recognise that there are some pupils who may require additional resources or extra support at some time in their primary school life and we aim to cater for the needs of all pupils. Early identification of a child’s needs is made by close consultation with parents and pre-school settings from school entry. Individual pupils are monitored through teacher assessment, pupil progress meetings and provision mapping.

Mrs Wolfe is our SENCO and is able to offer support to parents/carers who may have concerns about their child’s progress. 

SEND Local Offer https://www.kent.gov.uk/education-and-children/special-educational-needs 

Special Educational Needs and Disablity (SEND)

The school has a policy for Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and follows the Code of Practice. When appropriate, referrals are made to specialist learning services and medical services. Any referral to an outside agency is undertaken with parental consent. Further details can be found in our SEND Local Offer and SEND policy.
The staff work in partnership with parents/carers and pupils and liaise with external agencies to build upon pupil’s strengths and develop the individual.
We promote equality of opportunity for disabled people: pupils, staff, parents, carers and other people who use the school.
We are committed to ensuring that disabled pupils can participate in the school curriculum, school trips and take an active role in all extra-curricular activities.  The school environment includes designated parking and step free access to the school building.  There are designated disabled toilets and a lift so that pupils can develop independence in self-care skills.

English as an Additional Language ( EAL)

We celebrate the fact that some of our children speak more than one language. We carefully monitor and track the progress of pupils with EAL to ensure they are not disadvantaged and recognise that they may require additional support to acquire the same competence in English as in their home language(s).  This support is provided in class through carefully differentiated work and, where appropriate, through the additional support and specific teaching with a teaching assistant.
Children who are learning English as an additional language have skills and knowledge about language similar to monolingual English-speaking children. Their ability to participate in the full curriculum may be in advance of their communicative skills in English.

Equalities and Diversity

At Sissinghurst VA Church of England Primary School we aim to create an inclusive culture for all staff, pupils, families and visitors to the school.  We recognise respect and value people’s differences and ensure that individuals or groups of individuals are treated fairly and equally and no less favourably, specific to their needs, including areas of race, gender, disability, religion or belief, sexual orientation and age.  We promote equality and diversity treating all staff and students fairly ensuring equal access to opportunities to enable children and staff to fully participate in the learning process and achieve and equip children and staff with the skills to challenge inequality and discrimination.

Children in Care / Looked After Children

We provide a safe learning environment for our Looked after Pupils ensuring that their individual needs are met by maintaining good communication with those caring for the child, social services and support services.  We commit to attending review meetings and ensuring the targets set on Personal Education Plans are integrated into school life.

Meeting the Needs of all Children

We want the children who attend Sissinghurst Primary School to leave us in Year 6 with the skills and positive thinking needed to achieve their ambitions and to lead happy, successful lives. We believe all children’s potential is limitless and encourage children to exceed and challenge their own expectations. We hold this as true for every child who attends our school, regardless of background or ability. Their specific talents and skills need to be nurtured; by providing them with either the opportunities to work at high cognitive levels in academic areas or a chance to aspire for creative or physical excellence, whilst still ensuring the holistic needs of the child are met, in order to provide a well-rounded education. We are committed to providing an environment which encourages all pupils to pursue a high level of performance in academic and non-academic areas.

We aim to encourage pupils to be independent learners, provide challenging work at an appropriate level and provide opportunities for pupils to work with like-minded peers both within school and the wider community. Provision for pupils is through quality first teaching, differentiation and high challenge in the classroom, teacher expectation of pupil performance and additional learning in interventions.

Our Philosophy

Our philosophy of mastery teaching and learning aims to maximise opportunities and develop the children’s confidence, so they can challenge themselves and take risks. Through mastery, learning is embedded by application, reasoning, evaluation and critique of skills. We believe in treating pupils as individuals, providing an education that is suited to their particular needs and abilities.